My jaw dropped. King of Swords? That’s the card. The one I got twice. The one that looked like Riah in Savannah’s deck. It can’t be. A third time? I balled my hands together, gripping my own fingers as hard as I could to stop them from shaking the whole table. That electric energy beside me was downright pulsing. I felt it brush over my arm like fingertips. I wanted to be afraid, but I wanted answers more. I looked straight into that nothingness where I felt her energy and clenched my teeth together. Tell me. Help me. Please, I’m begging you. I don’t understand.
“She says…she is trying to help you, to tell you – did you just ask her that?” When I nodded, Mark shivered and rolled his neck. “Wild. She says, Death is you. Then The Star is coming to guide you onto the right path, to trust this person. The Empress is going to help you when you need it the most, don’t fight her or you’ll be in more trouble than you can imagine. And then these last two, Emperor and High Priestess…she says they’re going to bring your memories back, to keep your eyes out for them. But this one, King of Swords, he’s the most important. Wait, what? I didn’t get that? Please, Elizabeth, I can’t understand—”
Mark froze with narrowed eyes.
“What?” I heard myself whisper.
“She says this guy has been around a long time, that you two have a history. It wasn’t the right time before, but it is now. You have to trust him.”
I groaned. My stomach tightened into knots. “WHO?” Just say his name. Any name.
Mark dove for a pen sitting on the table then turned sheet white. He stared into the empty space with scared eyes then started scribbling. His hands were definitely shaking like mine now. “Okay, okay, I’m writing it. I’ll give it to her. Please, ma’am, stay with us. She says she can’t, she must go but that you must see this and know it’s time.”
“What is it?”
“She says…” Mark shivered again. “Saraphina Proctor, you’re more important than you could know. Trust him, and you’ll get your mother and uncle back. But stop fighting us, we’re here waiting to help. Let us in.”
“Let you in?” I shrieked. My heart thundered through my veins. “Let who in? How? What does that even mean? I don’t understand.”
And then that energy vanished faster than it appeared.
She was gone. I knew it with every fiber of my being.
Come back. Please. Elizabeth come back.
“That has never happened. Not like that.” He rubbed his arms and his legs bounced under the table. His dark eyes were still latched on that empty space. “The spirits have words for you – wait, is that your name? Did that spirit know your name?”
I nodded but my whole body was trembling.
Mark cursed and jumped to his feet. He shifted his weight around then rubbed his face. “Most people talk to their deceased grandparents or something but that?” He shivered.
That cold energy was gone but my body had already turned to ice. My teeth rattled together. She said my name. She must actually know me.
He leaned down and picked up the paper he’d scribbled on then handed it to me. “Come with me.”
I jumped to my feet without hesitation. I wanted answers but I wanted to get out of there as fast as possible. Mark sped through the store like it was on fire. I glanced around and my heart sank. Savannah and Gigi were nowhere in sight and Brian was talking to a few customers. I hurried after Mark even though my body felt numb.
Mark stopped just outside the store then spun to face me. He pulled a crystal necklace off of his neck then draped it over my head. “Please. Take this. It’ll protect you. I-I made it myself. Nothing in that store is going to be strong enough for you. I couldn’t give it to you inside. Please, take it.”
A strangled cry escaped my lips. What does that mean? Why do I need protection? But I couldn’t ask. My jaw was locked shut. My teeth were vibrating against each other. I felt every hair and nerve ending on my body standing tall and buzzing. Shivers rattled through me so hard I wanted to curl into a ball. Cool energy radiated out of the necklace he’d just put on me, but I couldn’t bring myself to look down at it.
“Saraphina…” Mark cursed and bounced from foot to foot. Then he shook his legs out and scrubbed his face with his hands. “That was the most real, powerful reading I have ever done. To be honest, I’m going to have nightmares about it. Please, call me if you need to talk. I don’t know who you are or what you are, but you are different and there’s clearly something coming your way.”
“M-m-mark, I-I-I—”
“I know that wasn’t half an hour but neither of us can do any more of that in one night. Good luck. I’m going to do some rituals for you when I get home. Be careful.” Then he turned and sprinted back into the store.
And I was alone.
Now was not the time to be alone. I needed my friends but I couldn’t wait for them out here in the dark by myself. Especially if they thought I was going to be in there for half an hour. And there was no way I was going back in the store. I had to go to them. I forced my feet to start walking but my mind was shutting down. Who was that spirit? Who is Elizabeth Bishop? How does she know me? Who are these people she was talking about? Who’s coming for me? What is happening? So many questions. She’d acted like she knew me. Hell, she told me she knew me. But that wasn’t possible, she’d died centuries ago. Yet she knew my name. Nothing made sense.
Then I remembered the note, the one the spirit had forced Mark to write. I uncurled my left hand and found the folded-up piece of parchment paper in my palm. It took me a second for my trembling fingers to open it but then I saw his elegant black scroll scribbled across it.
The note read: When the Angel of Tides rings his drum, Beware the time has finally come. Sides of fate must be chosen, For the bonds of peace are unwoven.”
Hot tears stung the backs of my eyes and a cry ripped up my throat. My heart was beating too fast. Too much blood rushed through my body. I tried to walk but my body was trembling too hard. I stumbled around the corner, then slammed face-first into a brick wall.
I cursed and tried to back away but my feet locked in place. I looked up and my breath left me in a rush.
Riah.
Chapter Nineteen
Saffie
Riah?
“Do you ever watch where you’re going or—” his golden eyes narrowed on my face. “What’s wrong?”
I tried to answer him but I couldn’t. I was frozen. Stuck. My body shaking.
His face hardened. The muscles in his jaw flexed and it made his cheekbones look razor sharp. He was terrifyingly beautiful, even as those sparkling gold eyes scanned me over. His long, pale hair flowed in the breeze. When his gaze returned to mine, he growled, “What. Happened?”
I opened my mouth and tried to speak yet still nothing came out. There was too much to say. It was too crazy. Too frightening. It was too much. Just too much. I was rattled down deep into my soul. My whole body trembled.
“Saraphina?” He rumbled my name with his deep voice and I desperately wanted to answer him.
Instead, I watched myself hold the little piece of paper up to him with shaking hands. “The medium…spirit…told him…tell me this…says…it’s time.”
Riah scowled and plucked the paper from my hand. He lifted it all the way up to his face and I watched his eyes scan the words as he read the note. His eyes widened just a fraction and his lips parted. His face paled like fresh fallen snow – but then it was gone faster than it appeared. His expression hardened right back up. Without saying a word, he folded the paper up into a neat little square, then reached down and slid it into the front pocket of my jeans.
I blinked quickly, trying to hold the tears in.
And then his face softened. Those sharp edges melted away and his eyes no longer felt like lasers on my face. He sighed — and wrapped his arm around my shoulders. I gasped. My heart skipped beats.
He pulled me flush to his side. His long fingers squeezed my shoulder and I felt my body melt under his touch. “Let’s fi
nd your friends.”
I nodded. My heart fluttered as the heat of his skin seeped through my clothes. It was a simple touch, a platonic friendly gesture, but it was just enough to thaw the chill clinging to my soul. He took a step and to my surprise, my feet moved with him. Like they wanted to stay near him. I was shaken. I felt battered and bruised. But the heat and strength in his arm was holding me together.
We walked together, at a pace comfortable for my short legs and not his height. I saw nothing but darkness around us but that was okay. I was with Riah. In the back of my mind something questioned whether or not I should trust him…but when it came to Riah, my mind didn’t seem to hold the reins. There was something about him that I instinctively trusted.
Maybe it was that burning ember scent of his.
Maybe it was the fact that he’d already saved my life.
Or maybe it’s because that spirit told you to trust him.
“SAFFIE?”
I jumped at the sound of Savannah’s voice. When I looked up, I found her and Gigi rushing toward us with wide eyes. And then I saw the very moment they realized who was with me because they froze in place. Their jaws dropped. Any hope they’d act casual and calm flew out the window.
Savannah’s sapphire gaze latched onto Riah’s hand squeezing my shoulder. Then she looked to me, then back to his hand. My cheeks warmed and I knew I was blushing, but it was a welcome relief to the bone-chilling cold before Riah had found me. I peeked over at his hand and hated that I noticed he’d switched which hand his ring was on. But I did notice. Sometimes it was on his right pointer finger, and sometimes – like right that moment – it was on his left middle.
Gigi cleared her throat. “What’s…what’s going on, eh?”
“What’s wrong? What happened?” Savannah glanced back and forth between us.
Riah’s hand slid down onto my upper arm and then he squeezed for a split second before pulling his arm back. The very instant his touch vanished that soul-crushing chill crashed back down around me. I felt heavy and weak. My body trembled and I stumbled forward. Savannah jumped out and caught me with wide eyes.
“Leave,” Riah snapped. His voice was sharp, sharper than it had been a moment ago when it was just us. But I must have made a face at him, because his eyes softened just a smidge. He arched one eyebrow. “Go home. Now.”
Savannah and Gigi looked to me with a million questions in their eyes.
But I had no strength to answer them. My teeth rattled against each other. The tears I’d been holding back rushed to the surface and my vision blurred. “I go home. Home. Now. Home.”
Chapter Twenty
Riah
I should not be here.
But I was nevertheless. I’d battled against my own better judgement for hours before succumbing to weakness. I had to see her with mine own eyes. I had to see that she was all right. For hours my mind replayed our encounter over and over. Each time my heart broke a little bit more. The fear in her eyes. The shaking of her body. The desperation in her expression. It was only a moment but the memory haunted me all through the night.
So there I was, standing in front of her temporary home just before dawn. The sky was barely beginning to lighten to the east. Not that that mattered. No one would see me. I glanced down to my right hand just to be sure my cloaking ring was in its correct place on my right pointer finger. It was.
I see you.
My heart fluttered as her words rang through my ears. And she had seen me, though I had not expected it. She’d gotten stronger, much more powerful than she ever had been. I had wondered if she’d seen me Friday in the park during photography class but convinced myself it was something else that had spooked her. Now I knew for sure she had. I was going to have to inspect Ms. Kelly’s camera. I’d followed her the rest of that day and night. I’d been sitting near them at that pizza place, and followed them to the medium for her reading.
She hadn’t seen me at either. Nor had she seen me all day yesterday as I followed her. I’d kept my distance both days as much as I could. Invading her privacy was not part of my job. I had to just keep her safe. I had not expected for her to see me through the hag stone, she shouldn’t have been able to.
Quit stalling.
I sighed and marched up the front steps. When I got to the door I reached out and turned the handle but it was locked. Thankfully. I may have lost my mind if it had been unlocked. I squeezed the handle tighter and pushed with my mind. My silver magic flashed from under my hand. The silver smoke wrapped around the handle and then the door popped open. I slipped inside quickly and carefully, then closed it behind me.
Once inside, I hurried up the stairs. My steps made no sound, I was but a ghost flying through the house. On the second floor, Landreia stepped out into the hall right in front of me. I froze so I would not run into her. She whistled while she walked, almost dancing down the hallway. She did not see me or even register my presence. Saraphina would have felt me.
As soon as Landreia was inside another room, I flew up to the third floor where Saraphina’s room sat overlooking the street. It was my job to know where her room was, though I’d only been inside of it with her once to see where it was. Since then, I’d tried to respect her privacy – even if she was unaware of my presence at all. If Prince Thorne knew the extent of the distance I’d been providing her, he would have my sword…but spying on the one I love the most was overwhelmingly wrong.
I was only here to protect her from harm.
Her energy radiated out of her room all the way over to the stairs. The smell of roses seeped through the cracks in the door and rolled down the hall. The scent knocked the breath from my lungs each time. I licked my lips and opened her door.
The sun had not yet reached her windows, but the light of the moon glistened against her skin. Her hair was vibrant and shimmering. See. She is safe. Turn thyself and leave.
My feet carried me forward until I stopped beside her bed. My chest grew tight and heat filled my lungs. It was hard to breathe this close to her. I rubbed my chest and sucked in a raspy breath.
In her sleep, without her fierce personality radiating from her eyes, she appeared tiny and delicate. My pulse fluttered uncontrollably. Warmth spread through my body. I should not be here still. I must go. Yet I found myself crouched down so that mine eyes were level with hers.
And that was when I registered the fear billowing out of her. She slept curled in a ball, with her knees pulled up tight to her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs, her knuckles white from how tightly she held herself. Sweat beaded along her temple and down the side of her throat. There was a shimmer to her bare shoulder, like a layer of sweat coated her.
I frowned and glanced around the room. There was nothing to fear in here. Yet her body trembled and rocked. Her eyes danced beneath her closed eyelids and her lips quivered. Sharp, raw, hot pain scorched through my chest. I hissed through clenched teeth. My gold translucent wings sprouted from my back, casting her small frame in a brighter golden haze.
Saraphina cried out in her sleep. Her face scrunched up and she shook her head wildly. Her red hair fell into her face. She shivered so hard her teeth rattled. Soft whimpers slipped between her teeth.
Again, there was nothing in here but — me? Is she afraid of me?
I knew I shouldn’t, but I was helpless to stop myself. I reached out and pushed those strands back behind her ear. As my fingertips brushed her skin, the tips of her ears elongated until they were as sharply pointed as mine own. Now that I was touching her, I seemed too weak to stop. I ran the backs of my fingers along her jaw and her cheeks warmed under my touch. Her skin flushed.
She sucked in a deep breath then exhaled slowly. The shivering stopped. Her mouth parted. I cocked my head to the side then traced my fingertips over her shoulder. Her muscles loosened as she released her tight grip on herself. She sighed then stretched like a feline, arching her back — pale pink translucent wings shot out from her back and fluttered in the moonlight.
What am I doing?
I should not be here.
She is safe and unharmed, I see that clearly. I must go.
But I didn’t want to. I didn’t want to leave this place without her seeing me. Every time she looked upon me with fear or apprehension it broke a piece of my soul. I hadn’t meant for her to see me last night outside the shop but I was glad she had. I was happy that I was the one able to console her in her moment of fear. I wanted that now. I wanted her to know — know what? Know that I crave her love more than oxygen? I cannot tell her this ever. It is the secret I shall die holding.
Then why am I still here?
Maybe just once. Just one time, one conversation. Besides, it would be smart if she trusted me enough to come to me when I was not cloaking myself. What if something attempted to harm her while the humans were around?
Right. Just one time won’t hurt.
I reached down to pull my ring off then froze. She could not find me here in her room like this. That would not make her trust me. I cursed and sprinted to the door. I felt no energy present in the hall, so I pulled the door open and hurried down the stairs. Landreia moved along the first floor, between the rooms in the back of the house. She did not notice me open her front door and slip outside.
Once the door was shut behind me, I scanned the street. There was no one in sight, but that was to be expected at dawn in the winter, especially with a thick layer of snow covering the ground. I pulled my ring off my finger, then slid it onto my left hand and reached up to knock twice on the front door.
Thirty seconds later, the front door flew open.
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